For Want of a Toy
by Takun18
Summary: Raven wants something. And the fact that she shouldn't really want it makes her want it all the more. After all, it's just a toy... TWOSHOT BBxRae Updated after 7 years : Beast Boy has a close encounter with a diehard fan - just not one of his.
1. Chapter 1

Teen Titans belong to DC comics.

**For Want of a Toy**

by Ta-kun

* * *

Raven tugged the collar of her cloak higher up, her neck and the base of her chin vanishing in a pool of material. Her hood gave a little more with the new leverage and she let it fall over her face, the slack folds covering her features more than usual. Now, more than ever, she realised just how far out of her comfort zone she was. Cautiously, the teenager cast a glance to her side, watching people shift aimlessly through aisles in the distance. She let out a breath she had been holding in satisfaction, realising she had some means of privacy. Through the safe confines of her hood, she turned back to shelving unit in front of her.

It was filled to the brim with the various plaything that were 'all the rage' these days. Blister packs on cards that hung on display hooks. Boxes with window's that showed off their plastic cargo. Crumpled, papery tickets that poked out from behind the clear display strip. A cluttered mess on the bottom shelf from where children and picked up things and put them back in the wrong place, or, hidden behind others to prevent anyone else from seeing them.

_Toys ._

Raven tried to retreat deeper into her cloak, the neck of the garment swollowing up to her mouth. Her plan had been both absured and simple. Simple, yes. She wanted to... _was_ going to buy something. From deep inside the pit of her stomache, she felt a tiny warmth flicker. Warmth that was struggling to over shadow her embarrassment. She wasn't suppossed to be here. Children bought toys. Parents bought toys. Well-wishers bought toys. But she, she was buying for herself, and she felt no guilt for it either.

Logic would denote it simple: she wanted it. She had money for it. She had noone telling her she couldn't or shouldn't have it. Simple. Of course, logic can only go so far before cracks would appear in it's surface. Noone told her she couldn't have it because she hadn't told anyone about it. She had money for it, but she had money for other things too. She wanted it... but why? Raven had reflected on this before coming to the store. She wanted. Not needed, wanted. Want was not new to Raven. She wanted to be free of many of the things in her life, to be free of her boundaries.

But this.. this was a toy, designed to entertain and amuse. No, want was not new. Want for an inanimate object such as _this_ was. And then again, she wasn't free of her emotional boundaries, which made a new difficulty rear it's ugly head. Fear. She was afraid of what the others might think or say or, God forbid, do if they knew what she was planning on doing. But with the fear came it's own seduction, and a simple name came into her mind with what to call the object of her desire. A forbidden fruit.

She wanted something that, while ethically was fine, in reality was not. And it made her want it more. And so, her simple plan had formed. How she had prepared to be in this part of Jump City, which coincidentaly held both a Library and a toy department in a store. How she was returning a book alone. How she would be gone a while, but back by a certain time. How she would have been able to slip back inside Titans Tower and to the safety of her room where she could tend to her new prize, and then she would be in the clear.

So, Raven turned her head upwards, gazing at a line of plush toys made into the likeness of her friends, her team, her family. Teen Titans dolls, the money made from their sale going towards repairing and compensating the destruction caused by the various villians in Jump City before the teens would arrive and detain them. The Dark Titan scanned the hooks, variousstuffed toyshanging respectfully in rows of dopplegangers. Toy Robin's, Cyborgs, Starfire's, Beastboy's, Raven's, Aqualad's, Speedy's, Bumble Bee's and even a twin set of Mas and Menos lay on display.

She was not a stranger to them: Starfire had bought several Aqualad toy's and left them around the Tower in an attempt to make Robin jelous. Which worked, because she found one that had "accidently" ended up in the waters around the island the Tower sat on. The plush figure had soaked up water, sinking like a floppy stone in contrast to it's counterpart.

Cyborg and Beastboy had also gathered an entire set, proping them on a shelf in the living room. Their plan was to eventually build a little model of the tower with the front wall missing, displaying the toys in little rooms.

Raven remembered with a faint smile how one day the toy set had been altered to display the Starfire and Robin dolls lying down, stuffed arms haphazardly positioned to look like they were hugging. The toy versions of herself, Beastboy and Cyborg had identical poses with their hands pressed together in front of their mouths, above their heads a sign that beared Beastboy's sloppy hand-writing with one word. "AWW!" Raven hadn't been there when Robin had noticed the little scene, but she did remember reading a book a few days later on the couch and looking up to see the scene changed, this time with an Aqualad toy replacing the Robin.

The Aqualad doll mysteriously vanished soon afterwards...

Since then, the shelf had been returned to it's normal status. Raven suspected it took a comprimise between the boys of the Titans: Beastboy and Cyborg agreed never to alter it again and Robin would leave it be. Irionically, the toy Alien and toy Boy Wonder were propped next to each other on the end, followed naturally by Cyborg, herself, Beastboy and the Titans East, before Robin decreed that it be 'unchangable'.

The sound of footsteps snapped Raven out of her thoughts. Out of reflex, she flew back, pushing herself to the back corner of the aisle. Even steps broke through the silence as a woman in the stores uniform walked past, studying a clipboard in her hand. Raven took a moment to regain her quickly-lost composure. Reaching into the folds of her cloak, she pulled out a watch face. In between the words "It's Hi Hi" and "Time", the digital display flashed. It was later than she would have hoped. Raven pocketed the Puffy AmiYumi watch and moved back towards the dolls.

Starfire and Beastboy together had bought five of the watches, one for everyone. Raven remembered Cyborg holding his up by the strap to inspect it, too polite (or wise) to upset Starfire. Robin followed suit, the only difference was he blushed and stammered a thank you, and Starfire beamed when he accepted. Raven remembered Beastboy pushing back his left glove, proudly showing off his watch on his wrist before handing her own to her. She remembered treating it with the same respect she did when both he and Cyborg had won her a giant toy chicken, and left it on the counter.

Since then, a combination of training and firing her starbolts had made Starfire lost hers. Cyborg was more than happy to replace it with his own, then later on, Robin had to replace as well. By this stage, the Princess had decided not to wear it, treasuring what she, to this day, still reffered to as "Robin's Watch". As for Beastboy, his watch was still on his wrist, or so Raven presumed. The last time she remembered seeing it was when the team had to work on Hotspot's temper problems. And her own watch, she retrieved when noone was looking, the same day that Beastboy had proudly pushed the box into her hands.

Since then, her own mix of teleporting, training and just plain battles had caused both straps to wear and fall off, but still, Raven couldn't bear to throw the time-teller away. It was a present, and while she felt the words "It's the thought that counts..." leave her mouth, dripping in sarcasm, she also felt her heart give a flutter just from holding it. So she kept it, consulting it when she was positive noone was watching. Back to the point, her faithful Puffy AmiYumi watch told her one thing. She was late.

Raven looked back up at the dolls. She couldn't help but feel like a child that had to rush to pick something before her parent's left the store. To take it, to leave it. To buy it, to abandon it. Raven's hand went up, shaking for a moment in front of the toy before grabbing it. She already wanted to bring it close, to give a happy sigh of contentment, but such things wern't becoming of her, and it could easily look like she was trying to steal the doll if she pulled her hands back inside her cloak. On top of everything, she couldn't take any attention to what she was doing, no matter what. So instead, she clutched the doll's body tightly. A part of her was afraid that if she weakened for a moment, she would let it go and flee, and she couldn't do that now. Not after all this.

Moving as quickly as she could throughout the store, Raven scanned the checkouts and nearly ran to get into an empty register before a woman with a large shopping trolley managed to snag it. She needed to buy it and leave: the less chance she had of changing her mind, the better. Dropping the toy near the register, Raven watched intently as the girl behind plucked it and looked it over before scanning the little tag on it.

"A Titan's fan, are you?" she asked, grinning and looking over Raven's cloak and the doll. Raven didn't answer, she just pulled out a Twenty dollar note and handed it over silently. The girl ignored her silence, and a stray thought ran through Raven's head. 'Probably trained to be so friendly...'  
"Yeah, I like him best too..." the girl went on, accepting the bill and fingering coins out of the cash drawer to present back as change.  
"Enjoy. Have a nice day!"

Raven picked up the toy and took her change, leaving the store. Turning the doll over in her hands, she picked at the tag. There was only one thing left to do now.

It was just a doll she had bought.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos."

The plastic tie on the cardboard tag was enveloped in a black aura, breaking neatly. Plucking the card off the doll, she stuck it in her pocket next to her watch and looked over the toy with an appreciating eye.

Now it was more than just a toy she bought.

"Now, your _my _toy."

* * *

The rest of the day was as normal as normal could be for the Teen Titans. An attempted robbery, squabbles at the Pizza shop over topping's, a movie rental, snack food, and more squabbles. All part of the healthy room-mate code-of-practice. Peppered of course with Starfire's misunderstanding's, Robin's remarks and Cyborg's logic, it was a typical scene. And last but not least, the cherry on top of the proverbial cup cake.

"Hey Rae! What would you call Robin if he was Lightning's brother?"  
"Beastboy..."  
"No, thats me. You'd call him Boy Thunder!"  
"...that was awful. It's only saving grace was it wasn't a 'Knock Knock' joke."  
"Well, you never used to say 'Who's there!'"

Raven and Beastboy rounded the corner to the halls that held their rooms. The rest of the Titan's had long since left for their own quarters, leaving the shape-shifter and the empath to themselves like nearly every night the past few years. And like every night, Beastboy would tell jokes.

"Beastboy, when will you give up getting me to laugh. All you do is get on my nerves."  
"When I get you to laugh, smile, or you kill me. Which ever comes first."  
"You know you're closer to the latter than the former, arn't you?" Beastboy stopped and beamed.  
"It'd be worth it."

Raven stopped next to his door, looking at him. The hallway had suddenly gotten smaller.  
"Is it that important that I smile because of your jokes?"  
"No. It's just important to _me _that you smile."

Raven couldn't help but feel that somewhere along the walk they had switched roles, and the corners of her mouth twitched upwards as she replied with what she called a typical Beastboy answer.  
"Oohh, deep."

All too sudenly they had switched back and Beastboy was grinning madly. She had seen him grin, but this was a new record. The corners of his mouth were up to his ears, both of which were wagging happily.

"I got you to smile and I didn't die! Well, Im gonna sleep tonight!" And before Raven could do anything, Beastboy leaned in close and smiled, chuckled, and winked.  
"So tomorrow I'm gonna work on getting you to laugh and not die. Night Rae!" And then he was gone, his door sliding shut behind him.

Raven didn't stop to dwell on what had just happened. Turning on her heel, she walked the rest of the way in silence. She toed her boots off as soon as she walked into her oom, walking barefoot on the carpet to her bed. Unclasping her cloak and peeling back her covers, she sat and relaxed a moment. Slipping under the covers of her bed, she thought back on Beastboy words, and just how close he had gotten when he had leaned in. Raven sighed and reached under the covers, pulling her new doll up to her chest. She looked at it, the lights of Jump City streaming in through her window, lighting her room. The makers got it right when they made them, this one in particular. The features were an exact match.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos."

The tag from the toy fell neatly into the palm of her hand as she summoned it, and turning it on it's side, she read the card in the light.

_"Beastboy. A quick-witted changeling who can turn into any animal."_

Dropping the cardboard tag over the side of her bed, Raven looked again into the face of the toy. _Her _toy. And _her _Beastboy toy happily smiled back, arms dangling around her fingers.  
"You don't make me laugh. You make me irritated, annoyed and confused. You make me needed and wanted... and the way your going, you make me happy. But you don't make me laugh, not yet..."

The toy didn't change. It sat propped in her hand, smiling back. Of course it wouldn't change. Not now, not ever. It would forever smile at her. Just like the real Beastboy. Raven pushed herself down into her sheets, drawing them up over her shoulders. The doll pressed close to her chest, both of her arms holding it.  
"But you will one day."


	2. Esquire

For a story I wrote over 7 years ago, I'm both amazed and humbled by just how much feedback I've had and requests to continue it. Maybe it's due to a sudden burst of TT nostalgia (thanks in part to the new show coming in March I hear), but I came up with this idea after hearing the title "Esquire", and thought it would be a good fit for the same story line. So, consider this a very late, still-somewhat completed addition to "For Want of a Toy." After 7 years, I've even managed to get a few things published, and when I look back on the original I can't help but think of how much I could do to it if I were to re-write it. But with all it's been through, I'll leave it as is, and hope you as the reader don't mind the massive shift in writing styles between chapters.

Also, I still don't own DC Comics or Sherlock Holmes.

**For Want of a Toy**

**Chapter 2: "Esquire"  
**

* * *

'_He had uttered a cry and bent over the body. Now he was dancing and laughing and wringing my hand. Could this be my stern, self-contained friend? These were hidden fires, indeed!_'

"What does 'esquire' mean?" Beast Boy asked aloud, curiosity and confusion lacing his voice. Raven's eyes snapped up from her page to the back of his green head. There was a general pause before Cyborg cleared his throat from the kitchen table.  
"It's a magazine – maybe I'll get you one for your eighteenth birthday," he answered with a chuckle. Raven could only roll her eyes before focusing back on her aged book.  
"It's an old formal term from Britain – it meant someone came from a high social class." She brought her book back up over her face, devouring more of her current chapter in _The Hound of the Baskervilles_. "These days it's just added for pomp and flair." She finished.  
"It's also a magazine." Cyborg supplied, grinning as Raven shook her head minutely. One of the very rare times that Beast Boy asked about something not related to games, comics and tofu and their metallic friend took the easy way out.

Regardless, Beast Boy hummed and looked thoughtful. "Beast Boy, Esquire..." he mumbled, before nodding to himself and grinning, lower fang jutting out. "And these days it's available to anyone?"  
"You could say that..." Cyborg said, wondering which definition the changeling was asking about.  
"Dibs." He merely answered, before standing on the couch and crossing his arms. "Beast Boy, Teen Titan and Esquire!" he declared. There was another pregnant pause, where only Cyborg looked up from the table. Eventually he merely shrugged and said not to stand on the couch. "Robin'll blast ya, BB." He explained. Beast Boy huffed.  
"Robin'll blast you, BB _Esquire_." He corrected.  
"If I have to re-read this sentence one more time, you'll be the _late_ Beast Boy, Esquire." Raven said dryly, eager to know the cause of Sherlock Holmes' jubilation of a mangled body. Beast Boy merely grumbled before hopping over the back of the couch and pouting. He crossed his arms and helped himself to the fridge as Robin entered with a paper in his hand.

"If nobody's busy, I need a volunteer for a job downtown." Robin dropped the page onto the table, letting Cyborg look over it before quietly helping himself to one of the metallic teen's waffles.  
"A Titans Toy Sale?" he read out loud, only to notice his missing waffle and making a snatch towards it. Robin jumped out of the way, earning a stern glare and a pointed finger from Cyborg. Beast Boy meanwhile swallowed a mouthful from a carton of soy milk and glanced over the table. A happy scene of a park was printed, with kids galore depicted along the bottom. Even if it was mostly a public relations stunt and a way to boost sales, he couldn't help but think of all the fun that went along with it.

"Ohh, I'll go!" he yelled with a grin, sticking his large hand up. Robin and Cyborg didn't look up from their gesturing grudge match, the boy wonder finally offering a jar of blueberry spread as a peace offering.  
"Sounds good, Beast Boy. You know how to handle a crowd." Robin's reply was automatic as he helped himself to a plate, but the green changeling was too busy drinking the last of his soy milk to notice or care.  
"Hey, I love kids," he answered finally, dropping his empty carton into the bin. "And it's all for a good cause, right?"  
"Plus you'll get to play with your peers." Raven said from behind her book. If he noticed that she had just called him a child, he didn't show it.  
"Yeah, all those folks have good taste, y'know." He said instead, dropping the leaflet back onto the counter and bouncing out of the room. "Look-out kiddies – Beast Boy Esquire, at your service!" The door slid shut behind him, leaving Cyborg and Robin to their waffles and Raven to her book.  
"Man, good taste?" Cyborg mumbled around a mouthful. "Has BB seen those things up close? They look nothin' like us." The teens looked up at their "never-again-to-be-altered" display case of Teen Titans toys.  
"Close enough for kids." Raven answered, burying her nose between her pages once more and thinking briefly of her Beast Boy toy, lying buried under her pillow.

* * *

In the middle of the day in Centennial Park, a green elephant sat up on its hind legs and trumpeted loudly through its trunk. There was a chorus of claps and sounds of admiration, before the elephant shrunk down to a happy monkey. A little girl giggled as it waddled past, waving and laughing at the crowd of children. Finally, the monkey flipped and cart-wheeled back to the middle of the field and grew into an enormous Tyrannosaurus. The green dinosaur roared to the on-lookers before once again becoming Beast Boy. The teen grinned and took a theatrical bow – he couldn't remember the last time he had so much fun.

"And a percentage of the sales of these fine quality toys goes towards funding the Jump City Care and Restoration committee." A pretty spokeswoman stood in front of a podium, speaking into a microphone and waving her hand across a table of assorted dolls. She picked up a stuffed Beast Boy and held it up for the crowd. "They _may not_ turn into animals, but by buying them, you'll be helping turn your town into a safe one." The real Beast Boy shifted and became a large turtle, before pulling his head into his shell and gaining a laughing applause.

In the next moment, there was a scream and his shell went spinning on the ground. The dizzy turtle came to a slow stop as a pair of jeans sprinted away, amid yells for security and help. When someone pointed towards the retreating figure and yelled to stop him, the turtle stretched into a lithe cat and charged forward. Past fallen security guards and confused parents, a green cheetah sped across the ground and rammed into the back of a man's legs – just another day in Jump City.

The figure fell forward with a groan, landing on a stolen box of dolls and knocking the air out of him. The cheetah's large paw morphed back into a gloved hand, and Beast Boy pulled a hood back off of the culprit. A red faced, gasping blonde man in his late twenties was hunched over the squashed box.  
"Mine!" he wheezed. "No idea... how hard... to get... these." Beast Boy frowned as the man rolled over, keeping the squashed box held close to his chest and swallowing thickly. A pair of Bumblebee and Raven toys flopped out onto the grass, but the blonde man didn't spare them a second look.  
"Have two each of those already." He mumbled. Beast Boy shook his head – sometimes, just occasionally, he thought their fans were worse than their foes.

"You honestly came here, bum rushed me, security _and_ scared kids, for _what_? To finish your collection?" The would-be thief glared up at Beast Boy before shoving his hand into the box and pulling out a doll of Aqualad.  
"For him!" he answered. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to get this one? For an Aqualad toy, I'd do _anything_." What precious little of Beast Boy's common sense shorted out at this confession. Kids screamed in fear, security guards tackled... and all because yet _another_ person found Aqualad pretty?

"It doesn't even swim!" he yelled. "It sinks like a rock!" The thief's eyes widened at this, and he clutched his stolen toy tighter.  
"You've had an Aqualad toy... and you've _submerged him_?" he whispered. "You're the worst! The absolute worst!" Beast Boy frowned deeper as a pair of disgruntled security guards managed to grab blondie by the shoulders, but not before he shoved his hand back into the damaged box and pulled out Beast Boy's own replica. The changeling grimaced at the sight of the struggling man, maiming and ripping at the green toy while being dragged away. It was a nearby sniffling that broke his thoughts, and the little girl he danced for as a monkey stood by with tears in her eyes. Beast Boy forced a smile and knelt down, picking up the forgotten pair of toys.

"Which one?" he asked, holding up the dolls of Raven and Bumblebee. The little girl sucked on her lip before reaching out and tapping the second one, and Beast Boy gently offered it to her. "She's had a scary day – you have to take care of her, okay?" The child nodded and wrapped her arms around it possessively before being scooped up by a thankful mother. Beast Boy waved them off when one an un-harmed guard tapped him on the shoulder.  
"Police are taking this loon downtown," he whispered loudly over the ongoing confusion. "Can you go along and make a statement? It'll make it all go smoother."

Beast Boy took one look at another frightened child being calmed by a father, who was offering a stuffed Robin doll to them. Beast Boy nodded and made sure he got the right station address, pushing the dropped Raven toy into his pocket and morphing into a falcon before chasing after the arresting officer's car.

* * *

"You gotta be kidding me." Beast Boy huffed and dropped his head onto his arm. "Does Robin do all this paperwork for _every _bad guy we send your way?" A policeman dropped another form down in front of the changeling and nodded.  
"Usually without spelling mistakes, too," he supplied. The Titan ignored the comment and scribbled along the new form, ticking boxes and signing dotted lines.  
"So is this guy gonna spend the night in here, or will he get some help maybe?" he asked. "Cause I bet some places still do electro-shock treatment. Just... y'know. Just throwing that out there."  
"Actually he's already paid his bail. He left here about an hour ago." Beast Boy was floored. Here he had been signing forms and making statements to keep a dangerous, raving (and he suspected perhaps rabid, too) lunatic off the streets and he was already out? He was free! Free to go home to his parent's basement and make kissy faces at his Aqualad poster! "Not to mention fill out his stupid Aqualad blog, too!" he muttered, shaking his fist to himself. The officer stared at the teen for a moment before taking a step backwards, clearing their throat.

"Well, he has a criminal record now, so he's known to us. Not to mention a restraining order will be raised against him if he acts out like this in the future." In Beast Boy's mind however, all thoughts were on a deranged blonde man in a grass skirt and coconut bra, holding up a stolen Aqualad toy.  
_"I-I-I-I-I-I like you ver-ry much! __I-I-I-I-I-I_ think you're grand!"  
"If you can just sign here, sir, we'll file this report away." Beast Boy signed once more automatically, shaking his head to clear it of the horrifying incident. His job done, he pushed himself off of his stool and grumpily marched out of the station. The officer looked down at the form – in scratchy, backwards and scribbled writing were the words "Beast Boy, Esquire."

* * *

"_And finally, a bungled robbery attempt was made today in the middle of Centennial Park. During a toy sale, a hooded man rushed security guards and attempted to make off with a box full of dolls. However, either from bad luck or bad thinking, the thief didn't count on one of the Teen Titans to be present during the event."_

Raven cracked an eye open and stalled her meditation, watching the news report on television.  
"BB made the news again." Cyborg mumbled. "We're gonna be hearing about this for a week, now."  
"Oh, how joyous! Isn't friend Beast Boy so good at keeping all of the children so wonderfully entertained?" Starfire did a spin in the air, watching the green monkey flip for a little girl.  
"_Police apprehended the suspect after the Titan Beast Boy stopped his escape attempt. His only prize was a pair of damaged dolls._"  
Cyborg guffawed at the sight of the robber being dragged away, face blurred but viciously destroying a Beast Boy doll and holding an Aqualad under his arm. "All that and all he got was the gag prizes," he laughed, before switching the channel.

"It's just as well he wasn't a real villain." Robin said, closing his communicator. "I just had a talk with one of the police chief's downtown. He said Beast Boy signed _all_ of the forms incorrectly, so I'll have to re-do them tomorrow." Raven quirked her brow at this latest news. Even Beast Boy should be able to sign his own name.  
"How-?"  
"He signed them with an 'Esquire' on the end." She shook her head and brought her legs down from the lotus position, picking up her book from where she left it.  
"Just how many forms do you need to fill in for petty theft, anyhow?" she asked, straightening her cloak as she headed to the door.  
"Don't ask."

* * *

It was much later that evening when Raven finished making herself a late night cup of herbal tea, and a tired, defeated Beast Boy slunk into the kitchen. The changeling eased himself into one of the chairs and heaved a world weary sigh. Raven continued to stir her cup. "Long day at the office?" she asked. The noise she got in return was somewhere between a moan and a grunt.  
"Just had a Robin lecture to finish it all off." He mumbled into his arm.  
"We saw the news – green hero saves toys from creepy fanboy." Her smoky monotone carried an amused ring to it.  
"I was scared I'd need shots after touching him." He got a small, chuckling "hm" at that, though he was still too fresh from Robin's lecture on signatures to register that he had gotten such a reaction. She leaned on the counter opposite him and stirred her tea.

"No good deed goes unpunished," she said, and Beast Boy held up a finger before reaching into his pocket. He stuck his tongue out and looked upwards as he blindly grabbed, before finally pulling something out and dropping it onto the table. Raven looked down at her own stuffed toy doppelganger, laying limp in front of her.  
"Managed to save this priceless treasure if nothing else." He said dramatically. "Fought fang and claw against tooth and nail for it, too. The rest..." he bowed his head, clutching his heart with one of his big hands. "didn't make it out of the evidence locker."

Raven reached over and picked up the toy, looking it over. The tag had been bent, scuffed and dirtied, but the doll itself looked fine. There wasn't even a speck of dust on the navy cloak it wore.  
"You know, I thought I saw him holding one of your toys, too..." she began, but Beast Boy held his hand up in a halting motion.  
"Trust me – compared to what he was gonna do to that Aqualad, death was less painful." In his mind, he began hearing another round of '_I-I-I-I-I-I__ like you very much..._' He shook his head once more and grinned playfully.

"After her near miss today, you better give it a home where it can rest and recover. Maybe let it read one of your big books." He pushed himself back in his chair and stretched. "No thanks needed. Just happy to know I've done my job, and another innocent lady can sleep safe at night." Raven arched a fine brow, regarding him for a moment, before rolling her eyes. Before he could make another comment though, she graced him with one of her rare looks that crossed between a smirk and a small smile. She took her teaspoon from her saucer and tapped it once on either of his shoulders.

"I dub thee Beast Boy, Esquire." Was all she said, and grabbing the Raven toy with her black powers she left the room. Beast Boy could only watch afterwards, grinning.

That night, Raven didn't sleep with her green toy under her spare pillow, hidden but within reach. Instead, it sat on a nearby shelf of her bookcase, propped against a copy of _Machiavelli_. Beside it sat her new gift, destroyed tag removed, where they could keep each other company.


End file.
